This invention relates generally to clamps usable by dentists to retain a rubber dam in a depressed position, and more particularly to a clamp which may be quickly released.
In certain operations, dentists find it necessary to isolate the tooth being worked on from mouth saliva and moisture. Usually this is accomplished by means of a dam in the form of a thin sheet of rubber having a small hole punched therein to accommodate the tooth being worked on. The dam is held by a clamp in a depressed position over the gum to expose the tooth at the work area. With the dam applied and held in position by the clamp, the dentist is then free to work on the tooth without fear of moisture or foreign matter interfering with or contaminating the operation.
Typical of rubber dam clamps in present use is the clamp disclosed in the Ivory U.S. Pat. No. 1,532,821. The Ivory clamp is constituted by a bow spring whose legs are joined to a pair of jaws shaped to engage a tooth, the bow spring being inwardly biased, whereby the jaws are normally closed. The jaws are provided with openings to receive forceps or a similar instrument, the outerside of the jaws having flanges extending laterally therefrom.
In using a clamp of the Ivory type, first the hole in the rubber dam is distended and the jaw flanges inserted therein. The forceps are then inserted in the openings of the jaws and the jaws of the clamp are spread apart, carrying with them the rubber dam mounted on the flanges. With the jaws spread apart, they may then be positioned over the tooth and when released from the forceps, the jaws grip the body of the tooth. Because of the pressure exerted by the bow spring, the clamp and rubber dam carried thereon are securely held in the desired position. Thereafter, to remove the clamp and dam from the tooth, the forceps are reinserted in the jaw openings and the jaws spread apart to disengage the body of the tooth.
It is sometimes necessary in emergency situations such as vomiting or with a management case in pedodontics, to immediately remove the dam to prevent any kind of trauma to the patient. When the dam is held in place by a clamp requiring a tool to effect disengagement, its immediate removal cannot be effected. Other clamp designs involve set screws to adjust the jaws about the tooth, and these, too, resist immediate removal of the clamp and dam. Should the dentist in an emergency situation therefore find it necessary forcibly to pull off the clamp, this action may cause injury to the patient.